TY - JOUR
T1 - A zwitterionic block-copolymer, based on glutamic acid and lysine, reduces the biofouling of UF and RO membranes
AU - Piatkovsky, Maria
AU - Acar, Handan
AU - Marciel, Amanda B.
AU - Tirrell, Matthew
AU - Herzberg, Moshe
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2018/3/1
Y1 - 2018/3/1
N2 - In this study, the anti-fouling ability of coating ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse-osmosis (RO) membranes with a block copolymer of polystyrene (PS) bound to an alternating lysine–glutamic acid peptide PS-b-(KE)15) was analyzed. The PS-b-(KE)15 coating had no effect on membrane permeability. Membrane fouling experiments were conducted with extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) extracted from the biological sludge of a membrane bioreactor, which treats municipal wastewater. The mechanism responsible for the anti-fouling behavior, of the modified membranes was found to be the hydration of the coating – attributed to the adsorption of electrolytes – as detected by quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D). The hydration of the coating was observed in the presence and absence of calcium. However, fouling of the modified membranes with EPS was mediated and enhanced by calcium, and the presence of calcium abolished the anti-fouling effects of the PS-b-(KE)15 layer on both UF and RO membranes. The interaction between EPS and the bare, uncoated membrane area in the presence of calcium likely eliminated the anti-fouling capabilities of the PS-b-(KE)15 layer. Membrane coating may be further improved by designing a continuous, denser layer of PS-b-(KE)15.
AB - In this study, the anti-fouling ability of coating ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse-osmosis (RO) membranes with a block copolymer of polystyrene (PS) bound to an alternating lysine–glutamic acid peptide PS-b-(KE)15) was analyzed. The PS-b-(KE)15 coating had no effect on membrane permeability. Membrane fouling experiments were conducted with extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) extracted from the biological sludge of a membrane bioreactor, which treats municipal wastewater. The mechanism responsible for the anti-fouling behavior, of the modified membranes was found to be the hydration of the coating – attributed to the adsorption of electrolytes – as detected by quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D). The hydration of the coating was observed in the presence and absence of calcium. However, fouling of the modified membranes with EPS was mediated and enhanced by calcium, and the presence of calcium abolished the anti-fouling effects of the PS-b-(KE)15 layer on both UF and RO membranes. The interaction between EPS and the bare, uncoated membrane area in the presence of calcium likely eliminated the anti-fouling capabilities of the PS-b-(KE)15 layer. Membrane coating may be further improved by designing a continuous, denser layer of PS-b-(KE)15.
KW - Biofouling, reverse osmosis
KW - Block-copolymer
KW - Extracellular polymeric substances
KW - Membrane modification
KW - Ultrafiltration
KW - Zwitterionic coating
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U2 - 10.1016/j.memsci.2017.12.042
DO - 10.1016/j.memsci.2017.12.042
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85039154272
SN - 0376-7388
VL - 549
SP - 507
EP - 514
JO - Journal of Membrane Science
JF - Journal of Membrane Science
ER -
